Catherine was greeted by cheering crowds on arrival in Reggio Emilia, Italy, on a visit that marked her return to overseas engagements after treatment for cancer. People in the square shouted and waved homemade signs, including one that read “Ciao Kate,” as the Princess of Wales began a walkabout in the city center.
She shook hands, paused for selfies and spent time with families gathered in the piazza, where the mood was loud and warm. Michael Cocchi, who had come from nearby Parma with flowers, said the Royal Family still has an important role in British culture.
The visit carried added weight because it was her first such overseas trip in more than three years. Catherine last appeared at this kind of event before her treatment, and her return places her back in a role that blends public duty with the careful rebuilding of a schedule that had been cut short.
Reggio Emilia was chosen for the trip because of the city’s reputation for supporting children in their first years, an area Catherine has made central to her work. At the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre, she met educators who explained the Reggio Emilia approach, which focuses on children’s relationships and learning through play. The princess also tried out some Italian with the children, drawing on language she learned during a gap year in Florence after leaving school.
After the meeting, Catherine told staff, “I have learnt so much. It has been really inspiring.” Her comments echoed the purpose of the trip: to see how another city organizes early learning and to bring that example into her wider campaign on the importance of the early years.
The crowd reaction suggested why she remains one of the most recognizable members of the royal family in Italy. Paolo Rosato said Catherine is more popular there than other royals and added that people see her as a figure who follows in Diana’s footsteps. Michael Cocchi, meanwhile, said he believed the monarchy still matters in British life, a view that captured the respectful, affectionate tone around the visit.
The trip may also be the beginning of something bigger. The journey to Reggio Emilia was one side of a royal tour built around children’s early development, and it could be the first in a series of international visits to places known for their own approaches to that stage of life. For Catherine, the day in Reggio Emilia was not only a public return abroad. It was a sign that her advocacy on early education is once again moving from speech to travel, and from private recovery back into the public eye.
